FROM EIR DAILY ALERT

June 19, 2018 (EIRNS)—U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo initiated a phone call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov June 18, according to statements by the Russian Foreign Ministry and U.S. State Department. In addition to the topics of Syria and the Koreas, the Ministry statement said,

“Lavrov and Pompeo also discussed some aspects of bilateral relations, including the schedule of political contacts between Russia and the United States in the near future.”

Heather Nauert, U.S. State Department spokesman, said of the conversation,

“Secretary Pompeo reemphasized the U.S. commitment to the southwest (Syrian) ceasefire arrangement that was approved by President Trump and President Putin one year ago.”

She continued that Pompeo said that “it was critical for Russia and the Syrian regime to adhere to these arrangements and ensure no unilateral activity in this area,” reported TASS.

The Russian Foreign Ministry statement said:

“The focus [of the talks] was on the Syrian settlement on the basis of UN Security Council Resolution 2254, as well as the consolidation of efforts to resolve the problems of the Korean Peninsula.”

Later in the day, asked about the Singapore summit with Kim Jong-un at his Detroit Economic Club address, Pompeo reported that he found in both his meetings in Beijing after that summit, and his discussion with Lavrov that morning, that Russia and China “are excited that there’s this opportunity. It’s their backyard, after all,” he pointed out.

“To eliminate the proliferation threat, the nuclear threat in North Korea, is something that they have long stated they were desirous for, but there wasn’t a motive force to drive it. So I am sure our interests diverge in certain places there, but the core opportunity to fundamentally reshape how North Korea thinks about itself and its place in the community of nations—both Russia and China are fully on board with our effort.”